Avoiding the fire

At Trunk Made-to-measure Doors, we take fire safety very seriously and one issue which often crops up in online forums is that of open and non-functioning fire doors.

Whether it’s a school, factory, flats or a hospital, there are no exemptions when it comes to fire safety and with the fire service attending over 150,000 fires in the UK per annum, you can see why it’s vitally important to ensure your door is fire compliant.

Improving fire safety within buildings is a challenge we are all continuously facing. And the exact piece of legislation or ‘British Standard’ that applies for fire doors in the UK is BS 476: Part 22 or BS EN 1634-1 depending on when they are fire resistant for a minimum of 30 minutes (FD30) or 60 minutes (FD60), enough time to get help you get free of the area. At Trunk, we make fire doors that comply with this, including glazed or glass doors as well as non-glazed doors.

Of course, all fire doors are part of what is called a building’s passive fire protection system. This means when used properly, ie closed, they form a barrier for either 30 or 60 minutes. Of course the same is true in reverse, when open, they function as a means of escape. With this in mind, they have to be able to open and fully closed in tense and demanding situations; something which may seem obvious but in reality, is a bit different.

Keeping a door free of obstacles and also fully functional is something that slips busy homes, working environments and public spaces, it’s so easy to put a chair or desk in the way but in a smoke-filled room, this could turn into a matter of life and death.

Equally, every part of the door and the space around the fitting needs to be sealed when fully closed, otherwise it’s not fire compliant and something insurers and fire investigators will spot in seconds.

With this in mind, it’s not surprising to learn that last year, around 65% of 26,000 planned fire door maintenance and replacement schedules did not progress as scheduled, putting lives at risk but also buildings and in many cases, protected heritage.

Because of this, the Architects Registration Board (ARB) has published guidance to call for fire safety to be taught to architectural students at universities, but they are not alone. There is now a UK Fire Door Safety Week which backs all areas of the construction industry to educate and raise awareness.

At Trunk Made-to-measure Doors, you can be assured that we take all steps to comply with fire safety in the construction of our doors and we are justifiably proud of our manufacturing process not only for the fire door aspect, but the entire work flow, from start to finish.